UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State women's lacrosse team will enter the 2014 season as the seventh-ranked team in the nation, according to the preseason Brine/Inside Lacrosse Media Poll released Monday (Jan. 27).
The Nittany Lions will face six squads - Maryland (No. 2), Florida (No. 4), Northwestern (No. 5), Virginia (No. 8), Loyola (No. 10), Princeton (No. 15) - in the preseason top 20. In addition, 2014 opponents Johns Hopkins, Ohio State and Cornell all sit just outside the preseason poll after receiving votes.
Penn State, which will face 16th-ranked Penn in an exhibition Feb. 16, will commence the season against Bucknell Feb. 19. The Nittany Lions will then welcome No. 2 Maryland to Happy Valley for their home opener Saturday, Feb. 22.
The Terrapins represent one of three top-five opponents on the Nittany Lions' schedule as Penn State will face league foes No. 4 Florida (March 30) and No. 5 Northwestern (April 4) during the ALC's final season. Penn State will play conference foes Ohio State and Johns Hopkins, both of whom received votes, April 13 and 19, respectively, while also facing Vanderbilt (March 15) and NCAA-newcomer Michigan March 23.
Non-conference home games include matchups against Duquesne (Feb. 25), 10th-ranked Loyola (March 8), Drexel (March 26), Cornell (April 8) and No. 15 Princeton (April 26). Penn State will travel to No. 8 Virginia (March 1), James Madison (March 5) and future Big Ten opponent Rutgers (March 12).
Under the direction of fourth-year head coach Missy Doherty, the Nittany Lions will look to build off an impressive 2013 campaign. The Nittany Lions will return a pair of IWLCA Second Team All-Americans - Maggie McCormick (Eldersburg, Md.) and Kelly Lechner (Silver Spring, Md.) - as well as four all-conference performers. Penn State returns its top four scorers from 2013 and nearly 90 percent of the team's scoring.
In 2013, Penn State posted its third straight season with at least 10 wins, while its 14 victories were the program's most since 1999. The Nittany Lions advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals for the second straight year and appeared in back-to-back NCAA championships for the first time since a three-year span from 1995-97.
Preseason Brine/Inside Lacrosse Media Poll:1. North Carolina, 173 (5)2. Maryland, 170 (2)3. Syracuse, 163 (1)4. Florida, 152 (1)5. Northwestern, 1456. Duke, 1397. Penn State, 1218. Virginia, 1109. Georgetown, 10510. Loyola, 9211. Notre Dame, 8912. Navy, 7113. Massachusetts, 6814. Stony Brook, 6515. Princeton, 4816. Penn, 4217. Boston College, 3318. Denver, 3219. Towson, 2120. Stanford, 18
Receiving votes: Johns Hopkins, 18; Dartmouth, 12; Ohio State, 2; Cornell, 1